MY ACCOUNT
Massimiliano Allegri rued Juventus’ previous Champions League shortcomings after Tuesday’s 4-3 defeat at Benfica condemned them to their first group-stage exit since 2013-14.
Juventus travelled to the Estadio da Luz knowing only a victory would keep them in contention for a top-two finish in Group C, but were left stunned by a scintillating performance from Benfica.
Rafa Silva’s double, as well as goals from Antonio Silva and Joao Mario, saw Benfica establish a 4-1 lead after 50 minutes, and the hosts stood firm when Juventus responded through Arkadiusz Milik and Weston McKennie late on.
A 2-0 defeat at Maccabi Haifa earlier this month left Juventus needing maximum points from their final two games to have any hope of progressing, and Allegri believes their Champions League fate was all but sealed before their trip to Portugal.
“We are sorry and angry, but the elimination did not come today, but in the previous games,” Allegri said.
“It is not necessary to get down, we would not want these things to happen, but they do happen.
“There must be a path of growth. Unfortunately, we conceded a goal from a penalty for 2-1, then you saw the match. We must continue to work.”
Juventus made several unwanted pieces of history at Benfica, conceding three first-half goals for the first time in a Champions League game and losing a fourth match in a single group-stage campaign for their first time ever.
The Bianconeri are also 10 points adrift of the Serie A summit following an underwhelming start to their domestic season, and speculation regarding Allegri’s future is sure to intensify following Tuesday’s loss.
However, the Juventus boss chose to remain philosophical after their exit, challenging his team to respond with a renewed run of league form.
“Failure? No. These evenings happen, defeats happen. It must be an opportunity to dive back into the championship,” Allegri added.
“You fall to get back up. I would have liked to have played the last game with Paris Saint-Germain to force Benfica out. The reality is this, let’s focus on the future.
“We have to react, we have a championship to play, there is a Europa League to win. It will not easy, there are players to recover. From tomorrow, we just need to get back to work.
“The first part of the season was more difficult than expected but we have 20 days to do well, then at the [World Cup] break we will recover almost all the players.”
